1、2009年北京大学考博英语真题试卷及答案与解析 一、 Structure and Vocabulary 1 There seemed little doubt that the spread of a particular cultural trait did follow a specific regular pattern_. （ A） as a society adopted （ B） which a society adopted it （ C） as a society adopted it （ D） when a society adopted 2 Long-term exposu
2、re to mass media portrayals of violence might make the audience insensitive or_to real acts of violence. （ A） emotionally neutral （ B） neutrally emotional （ C） emotionally mutual （ D） mutually emotional 3 The Collectors Edition coin is_, and represents a true collectors treasure to be appreciated fo
3、r generations to come. （ A） unlikely any Elvis Presley collectible ever released （ B） unlikely any Elvis Presley collectible never released （ C） unlike any Elvis Presley collectible never released （ D） unlike any Elvis Presley collectible ever released 4 _, the short is in some ways not really new.
4、（ A） Like many another new things （ B） Like much other new things （ C） Like many other new things （ D） Like many another new thing 5 One of the recurrent frustrations and tragedies in the history of thought is caused by the uncertainty_ to solve a given problem by traditional methods previously appl
5、ied to problems which seem to be of the same nature. （ A） that is possible （ B） that it is possible （ C） whether it is possible （ D） about what is possible 6 Kepler reconciled astronomy with physics, and substituted for fictitious clockwork a universe of material bodies not unlike the earth, freely
6、floating and turning in space, moved by forces_. （ A） acted on them （ B） being acted on it （ C） acting on them （ D） having acted on it 7 Experimental sciences, based on the observation of the external world, cannot aspire to completeness; the nature of things, and the imperfection of our organs_. （
7、A） are likely opposing it （ B） are opposed to it and the like （ C） are alike opposed it （ D） are opposing it likewise 8 Boris Yeltsin, Russias_President, died. His funeral in Moscow was attended by a bevy of world leaders past and present. （ A） prior （ B） past （ C） former （ D） late 9 Some economists
8、 fret that share prices are moving far_companies earnings, to a degree scarily reminiscent of Japan in the late 1980s just before its crash. （ A） ahead of （ B） back of （ C） independent of （ D） abreast of 10 Australia is struggling to cope with the consequences of a devastating drought. As the world
9、warms up, other countries should pay_. （ A） heel （ B） heal （ C） heed （ D） head 11 Facing the danger, they were quite_themselves. （ A） in case of （ B） in name of （ C） in possession of （ D） in charge of 12 Before turning to writing, I spent eight years as a lawyer_ about how life would be with a promi
10、nent father blazing my trail. （ A） fantasizing （ B） fascinating （ C） facilitating （ D） finalizing 13 At first, movies were little more than amusing_ pictures that appeared to move. （ A） novels （ B） novelties （ C） notices （ D） novices 14 _ commutation via the telegraph began in the 1840s, just before
11、 the Civil War, and via the telephone just afterward (1870s) . （ A） Instantaneous （ B） Spontaneous （ C） Simultaneous （ D） Instinctive 15 I dont understand why youre getting so_about. Its really not a problem. （ A） worked out （ B） worked up （ C） worked over （ D） worked against 16 The school shooting
12、triggered a barrage of transparently irrelevant proposed solutions, tossed out without regard to their relevance to the events that supposedly_the proposals. （ A） occasioned （ B） concerned （ C） illuminated （ D） ensued 17 _active in commerce or the professions, most of the wealthy were not self-made,
13、 but had inherited family fortunes. （ A） Except for （ B） Despite （ C） As （ D） Though 18 Men commit_ motoring offences as women, according to the Home Office figures. （ A） nine times of （ B） as nine times （ C） nine times that of （ D） nine times as many 19 _, wireless communications will increasingly
14、become part of the fabric of everyday life. （ A） In years to come （ B） Since coming years （ C） For years to come （ D） Over coming years 20 Harvard is committed to_ongoing communication and cooperation as project plans are_. （ A） maintain, shaping （ B） maintaining, shaping （ C） maintain, shaped （ D）
15、maintaining, shaped 二、 Reading Comprehension 20 Why does storytelling endure across time and cultures? Perhaps the answer lies in our evolutionary roots. A study of the way that people respond to Victorian literature hints that novels act as a social glue, reinforcing the types of behaviour that ben
16、efit society. Literature “could continually condition society so that we fight against base impulses and work in a cooperative way“, says Jonathan Gottschall of Washington and Jefferson College, Pennsylvania. He and co-author Joseph Carroll at the University of Missouri. St Louis, study how Darwins
17、theories of evolution apply to literature. Along with John John-son, an evolutionary psychologist at Pennsylvania State University in DuBois, the researchers asked 500 people to fill in a questionnaire about 200 classic Victorian novels. The respondents were asked to define characters as protagonist
18、s or antagonists and then to describe their personality and motives, such as whether they were conscientious or power-hungry. The team found that the characters fell into groups that mirrored the egalitarian dynamics of a hunter-gather society in which individual dominance is suppressed for the grea
19、ter good (Evolutionary Psychology, vol 4, p 716). Protagonists, such as Elizabeth Bennett in Jane Austens Pride and Prejudice, for example, scored highly on conscientiousness and nurturing, while antagonists like Bram Stokers Count Dracula scored highly on status-seeking and social dominance. In the
20、 novels, dominant behaviour is “powerfully stigmatized“, says Gottschall. “Bad guys and girls are just dominance machines; they are obsessed with getting ahead; they rarely have pro-social behaviours. “ While few in todays world live in hunter-gatherer societies, “the political dynamic at work in th
21、ese novels, the basic opposition between communitarianism and dominance behaviour, is a universal theme“, says Carroll Christopher Boehm. A cultural anthropologist whose work Carroll acknowledges was an important influence on the study, agrees. “Modern democracies, with their formal checks and balan
22、ces, are carrying forward an egalitarian ideal“. A few characters were judged to be both good and bad, such as Heathcliff in Emily Brontes Wuthering Heights or Austens Mr. Darcy. “They reveal the pressure being exercised on maintaining the total social order,“ says Carroll. Boehm and Carroll believe
23、 novels have the same effect as the cautionary tales told in older societies. “Novels have a function that continues to contribute to the quality and structure of group life,“ says Boehm. “Maybe storytelling from TV to folk talesactually serves some specific evolutionary adaptation,“ says Gottschall
24、. Theyre not just byproducts of evolutionary adaptation. 21 According to the study mentioned in the passage, which one of the following best defines the function of literature in human society? （ A） It helps with the evolutionary progress. （ B） It helps advocate peoples basic impulse and conscientio
25、usness. （ C） It reinforces the types of behavior that benefit a cooperative society. （ D） It suppresses basic impulses and sets regulations for society. 22 What were the respondents in the research asked to do? （ A） To identify protagonists and antagonists in some novels and describe them. （ B） To g
26、roup characters in novels who mirror the egalitarian dynamic of a society. （ C） To give scores to literary character in regard to social dominance. （ D） To tell the bad guys from the good ones in some novels. 23 What is said about the bad guys and girls in novels? （ A） They are protagonists that are
27、 powerfully stigmatized. （ B） They are always afraid of getting ahead of others. （ C） They rarely have behaviors that protect the society. （ D） They always seek dominant status in society. 24 In the political dynamic of literature, to what is dominant behavior set opposed ? （ A） The universal theme
28、of power. （ B） The egalitarian ideal. （ C） Modern democracies. （ D） Formal checks and balances of a traditional society. 24 Helicobacter pylori is one of humanitys oldest and closest companions, and yet it took scientists more than a century to recognize it. As early as 1875, German anatomists found
29、 spiral bacteria colonizing the mucus layer of the human stomach, but because the organisms could not be grown in a pure culture, the results were ignored and then forgotten. It was not until 1982 that Australian doctors Barry J. Marshall and J. Robin Warren isolated the bacteria, allowing investiga
30、tions of H. pyloris role in the stomach to begin in earnest. Over the next decade, researchers discovered that people carrying the organisms had an increasing risk of developing peptic ulcers-breaks in the lining of the stomach or duodenum and that H. pylori could also trigger the onset of the most
31、common form of stomach cancer. Just as scientists were learning the importance of H. pylori, however, they discovered that the bacteria are losing their foothold in the human digestive tract. Whereas nearly all adults in the developing countries would still carry the organism, its prevalence is much
32、 lower in developed countries such as the U S. Epidemiologists believe that H. pylori has been disappearing from developed nations for the past 100 years thanks to improved hygiene, which blocks the transmission of the bacteria, and to the widespread use of antibiotics. As H. pylori has retreated, t
33、he rates of peptic ulcers and stomach cancer have dropped. But at the same time, diseases of the esophagus including acid reflux disease and a particularly deadly type of esophageal cancer have increased dramatically, and a wide body of evidence indicates that the rise of these illnesses is also rel
34、ated to the disappearance of H. pylori. 25 The authors primary purpose in writing this passage is to_. （ A） warn people of the harm of H. pylori colonization of the stomach （ B） make people aware of the harm of eradicating H. pylori from the stomach （ C） suggest that the benefits of eradicating H. p
35、ylori from the stomach are not outweighed by the potential harm （ D） call attention to the consequences of eradicating H. pylori from the stomach 26 Which of the following statements can be inferred from the passage? （ A） Improvements in sanitation are a vital element in helping ward off peptic ulce
36、rs. （ B） People in the developing countries are not likely to contract esophageal diseases. （ C） Nowadays few people in the developed countries suffer from stomach cancer. （ D） Scientists have long recognized H. pyloris important role in the stomach, but could do nothing about it. 27 Which of the fo
37、llowing would most probably follow the last sentence of this passage? （ A） Furthermore, the disappearance of H. pylori may be a sentinel indicating the possibility of other microbial extinctions as well. （ B） The possibility that this bacterium may actually protect people against disease of the esop
38、hagus has significant implications. （ C） However, there has been an unexpected rise in the incidence of a new class of diseases involving the esophagus. （ D） The rise of these diseases has occurred just as H. pylori has been disappearing, and it is tempting to associate the two phenomena. 27 Under t
39、he Bush administration America has gone from a policy of “ dual containment“ of Iran and Iraq to one approaching dual failure. It removed the iron rule of Saddam Hussein, but created an anarchic void in Iraq into which Iran has extended its influence. Exhausted by the insurgency in Iraq, America now
40、 struggle to deal with the more acute threat of weapons of mass destruction posed by Irans nuclear programme. Americas Arab allies may be terrified by the strengthening of Iran, but they are even more terrified by the prospect of American military action to destroy Irans nuclear facilities. In Europ
41、e there is a degree of acceptance that, sooner or later, the world may have to deal with a nuclear-armed Iran. Some in the Bush administration though, regard that prospect as even more horrendous than the consequences of attacking Iran, which may include more instability in Iraq and elsewhere , more
42、 terrorism and the disruption of oil from the Persian Gulf. There is no certainty, moreover, about how far military strikes can set back the nuclear programme, if at all. George Bush has repeatedly said that “all opinions “ remain on his table, by which he means the use of military force. But the on
43、e option he has seemed less keen on is the idea, advocated by many of seeking a “grand bargain“ with Iran on a whole range of disputes, from the nuclear question to peace with Israel. When America was strong, it felt it did not need to deal with Iran. Now it is worried by the prospect of looking wea
44、k. Nevertheless, there has been a real change of policy since the days when Mr. Bush said Iran was part of the “axis of evil“ . His administration has offered to join nuclear talks if I-ran suspends uranium enrichment. Ray Takeyh, an expert on Iran, argues in the latest issue of Foreign Affairs that
45、 America should go fur ther and talk to Iran without precond itions. Irans rise is unstoppable, he says; better to deal with the pragmatists, and strengthen them, rather than give free rein to the radicals. He may or may not be right. 28 According to the passage, America failed to_. （ A） contain eit
46、her Iran or Iraq （ B） extend its influence in Iran （ C） create an anarchic void in Iraq （ D） remove the rule of Saddam Hussein 29 The phrase “that prospect“ (line 2, Para 2) refers to_. （ A） American military action on Iran （ B） setback in Irans nuclear program （ C） an Iran armed with nuclear weapon
47、s （ D） an Irag armed with nuclear weapon 30 Ray Takyh urged the America government to_. （ A） stop seeing Iran as part of “the axis of evil“ （ B） hold nuclear talks with Iran with no conditions （ C） suspend the uranium enrichment program in Iran （ D） adopt a pragmatic rather than radical approach to
48、Iran 30 The year of 2009 will bring an avalanche of books, lectures, television programs and articles on Charles Darwin. (II-1) It is 200 years since he was born and 150 years since he was pushed to publish his On the Origin of Species earlier than he intended by the arrival of a letter from Alfred
49、Russel Wallace, the naturalist who, independently, had the same theory of natural selection that Darwin had supposed all his own. Since Darwin wasnt alone in thinking up the theory of natural selection or in assembling evidence in support of evolution, are we right to make such a song and dance of his anniversary? The short answer is “yes“ . (II-2) On the Origin of Species is the most important biology book yet written and Darwin has d
